Underneath (The Front Cover)

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt is one of those adventure animal as the main characters books. It reminds me of The Fox and the Hound (which I haven't seen since I was little so I may be way off on that). Come to think of it in The Fox and the Hound they just never could be friends... since I haven't finished the book I hope that isn't how it ends.

This story is about a hound and a cat and her two kittens... but it is about so much more. There is an evil human, Gar, a king of the alligators, and legends and nature.

I am enjoying this book because I keep finding myself touched by the beautiful way the author uses language.

"Loss. A small, hissing word. A word that simmers into nothing. Beneath the old pine, Grandmother stewed inside her jar. Loss engulfed her as it had a million times before in this dark space. Lossssss! she whispered. — A word that scrapes against the skin." pg 92

Grandmother is a mysterious snake trapped in a jar, that has been knocked loose, under an ancient tree... her story is told in bits woven through the story of the animals and Gar. It is too bad that all too often the most vile horrible creatures in story are human. Too often it is true. In this story Gar has more than a rough childhood and lives to gain respect from the few humans he sees. The author describes the important words and here she describes Gar's view of respect:

"The word 'respect' floated in the thick and heavy air that surrounded him. Respect buzzed in his ears, like a thousand hungry mosquitoes. He swatted at his face and neck, but couldn't shoo away the hissing sound the word made on is tongue. Respect. He swallowed the word whole and licked his lips." pg 20

These could be poems and that is why I like it. It is like the author is holding out a thought and showing me all the different sides — a fine jewel sparkling on the page. I hope to finish this book tonight...